The Deep State: Definitional Debates and Impacts

Dover, Robert

Abstract

The term deep state has been used to describe the military-intelligence-industrial complex in some notable contexts such as the US, UK, India, Egypt and Turkey. More recently it has been appropriated by populists and conspiracy theorists to describe a network of interests working towards defeating or thwarting the will of the public. This chapter explores how the term 'deep state' has developed and has been used, and does so across country case studies. The chapter critically evaluates whether the term has any ongoing utility for analysts or whether it has been undermined by its adoption by conspiracy theorists.

Citation

Dover, R. (2022). The Deep State: Definitional Debates and Impacts. In R. Dover, H. Dylan, & M. S. Goodman (Eds.), A Research Agenda for Intelligence Studies and Government (155-166). London: Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781800378803.00020

• Acceptance Date: Feb 28, 2022
• Online Publication Date: Nov 4, 2022
• Publication Date: Nov 4, 2022
• Deposit Date: Mar 3, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: May 5, 2023
• Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
• Pages: 155-166
• Series Title: Elgar Research Agendas
• Book Title: A Research Agenda for Intelligence Studies and Government
• Chapter Number: 13
• ISBN: 9781800378797
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4337/9781800378803.00020
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/3939973
• Publisher URL: https://www.e-elgar.com/shop/gbp/a-research-agenda-for-intelligence-studies-and-government-9781800378797.html